Stark lawmakers divided on guns

America along with Stark County’s state and congressional delegation is divided on how to stop gun violence. Democrats Wednesday expressed support for President Barack Obama’s guns plan while Republicans stressed the importance of protecting their constituents’ Second Amendment right to bear arms.

Below are the positions of the congressmen, U.S. senators and state legislators who represent Stark County:

U.S. Rep. Bob Gibbs, R-Lakeville — Declining in a statement to debate “the specifics of all that the president released today,” Gibbs said society has to find ways to ensure children are protected but it can’t be by “hampering the constitutional rights of law-abiding gun owners” nor by using the Newtown “tragedy as an exploitation for the gun control lobby.” Supports a “national discussion on treating mental illness and ways to better enforce current laws.”

U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci, R-Wadsworth — Said in a statement that identifying and treating mental health conditions should be the top priority. “I was pleased to hear the president address mental health in his proposal” but “I would need to see the specifics of any legislation the House was considering for passage before I could comment further on what part or parts of it I could support. What I can say is that any restrictions on our Second Amendment rights must be narrowly tailored and meet the strictest standards of scrutiny our judiciary can apply.”

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Niles — Said Obama presented “a number of reasonable proposals for reform of our nation’s gun laws” without saying specifically which proposals he would support. Said “the best way to protect (Americans’ right to bear arms) is for Congress to support reasonable laws and regulations which will make it harder for criminals, terrorists, and the mentally ill to obtain guns. There’s no reason this cannot be accomplished while also allowing responsible and law-abiding citizens to obtain guns for recreational use and self-protection.”

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Avon — Said in a statement that Obama “is taking long-overdue action on efforts that improve background checks, ensure more federal coordination, and improve school safety. It’s now time for Congress to renew the assault weapons ban, a common-sense effort to prevent the proliferation of deadly, high-powered weapons, and close the gun show loophole that prevents background checks from being conducted to ensure guns are purchased lawfully. We should also work to reduce the stigma attached to mental health treatment and make sure it is available to those who need it.”

U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Cincinnati — “Unfortunately, however, it appears the president has chosen to act unilaterally wherever he can and focus on new, unproven gun bans which would undermine the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens. I remain committed to ensuring that those who suffer from mental illness, a common thread in these attacks, receive proper care, that our current gun laws are enforced, that background checks are made more effective, that school security is enhanced, and that we address the deeper issue of violence in our society.” Last week, he said through a spokeswoman last week , he supports creating a commission to determine the “root cause” of mass shootings and how to “improve access to mental health care, how to best enhance school security, how to tighten the enforcement and effectiveness of current gun laws, and how to address the deeper problem of a culture that glorifies violence.”

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State Rep. Kirk Schuring, R-Jackson Township — Attending an Ohio House Republican retreat Wednesday, he said he hadn’t had a chance yet to read Obama’s plan. Last week, he declined to give his position on possible “hypothetical” state legislation on guns before a legislative panel thoroughly reviews all the issues related to mass shootings including the mental health laws, the culture of violence in entertainment and gun laws. “We need to be deliberative and objective,” he said. “Then I’ll tell you what I think we need to do.”

State Rep. Christina Hagan, R-Marlboro Township — In a text, she said, “I respect the president’s heart but could not with good conscience support his desire to strip away our second amendment rights.” She did not say which parts of his plan she believed would be unconstitutional. She also wrote, “Tyranny most often surfaces in the places where people have been restricted from carrying weapons for self defense, history shows, in tragic incidents such as the recent school shooting, that gun-free zones do not create safety but create targets for criminals who know they will be the only person to bear arms within the facility. Had the administrators or educators (in Newtown) had access to personal firearms, the victims may have been spared.”

State Rep. Stephen Slesnick, D-Canton — Stressing he supports Americans’ Second Amendment right to bear arms, he said he backs Obama’s proposed assault weapons ban because “they’re killing machines. They have nothing to do with sportsmanship and guns that people have for protection are not those types of guns.” He also backs Obama’s call for universal background checks and ammunition limits. “When you have the ability to continually shoot and you don’t have to reload ... (that’s) the key ingredient in all these mass shootings. ... why do you really need 30 rounds?”

State Rep. Marilyn Slaby, R-Copley Township — Could not be reached for comment on Obama’s plan. But last week, she said, “I don’t know enough about type of guns to know what should be restricted. I know the tragedies we’ve seen recently are causing a lot of emotional reaction rather than logical thinking of the issues of the guns. We do need to move forward to protect our Second Amendment rights while keeping our citizens safe at the same time. ... I don’t like guns, but this doesn’t mean I should put my likes and dislikes on someone else.” She said she was open to talking about possible “guns out there that definitely are so bad that nobody should ever have them” She backs background checks already mandated by law, but she did not say whether she would support expanded background checks, as she pointed out that background checks would not have stopped the Newtown shooter from using his mother’s guns.

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State Sen. Scott Oelslager, R-North Canton — Could not be reached.

State Sen. Frank LaRose, R-Copley Township — Said he couldn’t say much about Obama’s plan without reading the actual legislation. But as for a “military-style assault weapons” ban, the Army Special Forces veteran said, “military style means fully automatic which is already illegal.” Last week, he said that while he supports current bans on people owning fully automatic machine guns, “making this kind of gun illegal and having that type of gun legal to me is in some ways is a fool’s errand. ... bad guys ... they’re not going to abide by the law anyway. ... what some people call an assault weapon is nothing more than a hunting weapon that looks black.” As for an ammunition limit, he said he’s open to supporting that but, “I don’t know how effective that would be” as many well-trained people can change magazines quickly and there are already hundreds of thousands of high-capacity magazines on the streets. He said the focus should be on why people commit mass shootings, looking at the glorification of violence in entertainment, getting people mental health treatment and improving school security. He said he was open to requiring background checks for purchasers of guns at gun shows and allowing teachers with extensive gun training to be armed in schools.